Ive been a logic user for several years and prior to that I used Cubase on the ST. Since emagic/apple announced that they would no longer be supporting logic for the pc ive know that sooner of later I would have to either switch to Mac or get a new sequencer. Recently ive spent a lot on new hardware for the PC so switching to mac really isnt viable.

so which do you suggest?

Im looking for somthing that will be easy to get my head round and has most of the functions logic has.

Why not Cubase SX 2.0? It is supposedly pretty good and will probably be even better very soon.
On the Mac platform you have Metro, Cubase, Logic and Motu Digital Performer. I guess there must be a zillion of similar products for the wintel platform._________________A Charity Pantomime in aid of Paranoid Schizophrenics descended into chaos yesterday when someone shouted, "He's behind you!"

Steinberg? Well.. I was kinda joking I guess. But they have been restructuring and cleaning up. Steinberg will probably be around for awhile. Steinberg was bought by some company making video cards / computer TV cards._________________A Charity Pantomime in aid of Paranoid Schizophrenics descended into chaos yesterday when someone shouted, "He's behind you!"

Track automation is a must, so is vst plugin capabilitys also logic theres a kind of modular approach to the mixing panel which I love...

Using any of the steinberg products would mean an OS update (to xp from win98) and seeing as Im very happy with the way the PC is working at the moment Id really rather not update only to find things arent working as they should....

Sonar is probably out. They support only XP, although I used to run it on ME with no problems. The Cakewalk people say the audio driver system in XP is much better than 98 SE or ME. I recently upgraded to XP and have absolutely no regrets. When you upgrade, you want to go to the XP Professional edition, not the Home edition. I was told this by a group of IT professionals I used to work with at Bell Labs. I forget the reason, but I can ask them if you are interested. I've found crashes pretty much a thing of the past with XP, although whenever we start a recording session, I reboot. I'm probably superstisious. I run RAID 1/0 on my machine using the Highland controller. I use the same hardware on my Linux systems.

Track automation is pretty much a standard thing in Sonar. You can automate virtually anything on the main program or in the pluggins. You can arm automation separately from recording midi or audio. Of course, punch in and out works with automation. It's easy to edit automation graphically too. You can also reconfigure the mixing board to your hearts delight. Sonar has very flexible AUX busses, BTW, if you are into plugin effects. I use it with the CM Motormix to good effect. I've called Cakewalk several times and found their customer support to be pretty good; no complaints.

Sonar has a very large share of the Windows market. Pro Tools is another popular system, but it is nowhere as flexible as the other programs. Unfortunately, it is the standard for audio production studios.

I'm sure all of the products are very good these days. I suggest getting a free demo and kicking the tires. That's the only way to know which is best for you. I've been using Cakewalk for years. I switched when Voyetra went out of business. That was a real bummer. That's why I like to go with the market leaders.

You should not fear XP. If XP likes the hardware you have now, use XP. and do get the full uncrippled Pro edition. If you really really like Logic and do not want to learn another DAW suite, then get a Mac and upgrade to the new Logic Pro which includes all the extras and whatnot... even the new reverb plugin. You can even keep your old PC as Gigastation sampler or as a VST instrument host or whatever.
On the other hand, you can just stick with your current setup as it is and decide later. But fear of XP should not be a reason for sticking with 98 and Logic if you really want to buy yourself another DAW software suite.

If you love Logic, then stick with Logic and get a mac. You decide._________________A Charity Pantomime in aid of Paranoid Schizophrenics descended into chaos yesterday when someone shouted, "He's behind you!"

Howard is right! I just read the product specs. Sonar seems like one well equipped stud! You can hardly go wrong with that one._________________A Charity Pantomime in aid of Paranoid Schizophrenics descended into chaos yesterday when someone shouted, "He's behind you!"

I used to love trackers too, it was my main thing prior Cubase on the ST.
You can get some really well specified tracker programs nowadays, I had a look at one recently but I found it hard to get back into the tracker mindset, if you like analogue style sequencers you'll probably fell quite at home.

thanks guys, Sonars looking pretty tasty, so its either that or a return to MODtracker.

Sonar is also a bargain compared to the samplitude gear.

I use Sonar exclusively, and it is certainly underrated, especially with the features added with version 3. There is the obligatory learning curve, but it's an especially nice tool. About to finish up my first CD in it.

Cyx_________________∆ Cyx ∆

"Yeah right, who's the only one here who knows secret illegal ninja moves from the government?"
-Napoleon Dynamite

I've always been a Cakewalk fan concerning the sequencer. I was completely unimpressed with Cakewalk Pro Audio, marginally impressed by Sonars 1 and 2 (enough so to select it as the DAW for my CD 2 years ago). However, with version 3, they really have put out something worthy, and I am excited finishing my disc in it.

Of course, I'm still mastering in CD Architect.

Cyx_________________∆ Cyx ∆

"Yeah right, who's the only one here who knows secret illegal ninja moves from the government?"
-Napoleon Dynamite

Sonar 3 is the OSX to Sonar 2.2 XL's OS9. I havent even gotten into the Ultrafunk plugs that are included, but their integration into the interface (if you choose to utilize them) is superconvenient. I may dabble with them on the next disc.

Insofar as competing with your Cubases (and formerly Logic), Cakewalk has, until recently, just been a great sequencer. That's what I started on, and became intimately familliar with the sequencer. Up until Sonar, their audio implementation in Pro Audio was only rudimentary. In fact, for a time, I was set on using Vegas Audio for multracking when I gave Sonar a chance. It would be nice if they ported it to Mac, I suppose, but the WDM kernel streaming would clearly be gone, and that is one of the strong suits of Sonar. Similar to Gigastudio. Both take advantage of functionalities on PCs that are non-existant on Macs.

I have found that, at this point, if you want to do something, you can pretty much accomplish it with any of the contenders out there, and that leaves preference of interface, for the most part. 10 to 1 says that the number one reason why people dont switch DAW's in unfamilliarity and learning curve.

Cyx_________________∆ Cyx ∆

"Yeah right, who's the only one here who knows secret illegal ninja moves from the government?"
-Napoleon Dynamite

I have found that, at this point, if you want to do something, you can pretty much accomplish it with any of the contenders out there, and that leaves preference of interface, for the most part.

One thing I've found lacking out there in audio software is specialization. It seems that every company thinks they have to build software with the capabilities of a whole sound studio.

I have not very good hardware so any extras in software (like a pretty UI) usually slow me down if not making it all but impossible to record. I'm just looking for a stripped down midi sequencer that runs very fast. Anyone see anything out there like that? Must I build it?

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